The present invention relates generally to the field of house cleaning and maintenance, and in particular to a new and useful self propelled blower apparatus that can effectively remove leaves and other debris from building gutters.
It is known to use blowers to remove leaves from lawns. Since this is done at ground level, there is no issue of danger or access to the area to be cleaned. While a blower may be effective to remove leaves and debris from gutters, a ladder and long power cord would be needed for electric blowers, and using heavier gas powered blowers would be awkward and potentially dangerous to use high off the ground.
In order to take advantage of leaf blowers to clean gutters, several approaches are known for using long air containing conduits from the blower at ground level up to a guide or other air directing mechanism at the gutter level. See for example, the following: U.S. Pat. No. 3,971,098 for Gutter Cleaning Nozzle; U.S. Pat. No. 4,349,039 for Home Roof Gutter Sweep; U.S. Pat. No. 4,402,106 for Blower Attachment for Cleaning Rain Gutters; U.S. Pat. No. 4,502,806 for Gutter Cleaning Device; U.S. Pat. No. 4,634,312 for Self Cleaning Drain Gutter or Pipe; U.S. Pat. No. 5,056,187 for Eave Trough Cleaning Apparatus; U.S. Pat. No. 5,195,209 for Gutter Cleaning System; U.S. Pat. No. 6,519,809 for Gutter Cleaner; U.S. Pat. No. 6,766,560 for Gutter Leaf-Blower; U.S. Pat. No. 6,926,210 for System for Maintaining Gutter Debris Free; U.S. Pat. No. 7,549,191 for Gutter Cleaning Blower Vacuum Attachment Apparatus; U.S. Pat. No. 8,739,362 for Gutter Cleaning Attachment for a Leaf Blower; U.S. published patent application US 2004/0143931 for Gutter Cleaning System.
It is also known to use water jets to clean gutters. Since gutters are usually one, two or sometimes three stories off the ground, long spray wands are needed for gutters that are closer to the ground, and ladders must be used for higher gutters. Also, if the spray of water is not immediately effective to the remove the leaves and other debris from the gutters, the leaves and debris get wet, heavy and sticky and therefor become more difficult to remove.
The inventor of the invention disclosed here has also invented a Gutter Cleaning Apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 9,074,374 which includes a channel with a water and air permeable platform for mounting in a gutter and an air flow guide engaged to an end of the channel and platform for directing air flow from a blower under and over the platform to lift and remove debris from an upper surface of the platform.
This inventor has also invented the Gutter Cleaning Apparatus of U.S. Pat. No. 9,175,477 which cleans debris from a gutter by including a platform with a plurality of spaced apart apertures each including a guide flap extending at an inclined air flow directing angle from under the platform for more effectively directing cleansing air flow from a blower to lift and remove debris from an upper surface of the platform.
A need remains for an even more effective way to clean household gutters using a blower.